(Photos © J. Maus)
Two Portland builders stood out among the country's best bicycle craftsmen today at the awards ceremony at the North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS).
Aaron Hayes of Courage Cycles was voted "Best New Builder," and Joseph Ahearne won "Best City Bike" for the second year in a row.
Aaron is a former product designer who started building frames just six months ago. When I visited his shop in Northeast Portland a few weeks ago he said he thought of his NAHBS debut as "a challenge".
Aaron Hayes
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Well Aaron, you not only met the challenge, you rose above it. Congratulations!
Last year, Joseph Ahearne took home the "Best City Bike" trophy for a mixte he made for his girlfriend. This year, the award went to his gorgeous orange bike I gave you a preview of last week.
Joseph Ahearne
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His winning bike.
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The day's biggest winner was another name you'll be familiar with -- Sam Whittingham of Naked Cycles. His stunning single-speed that I drew your attention to yesterday took home three major awards today; "President's Choice" (chosen by show founder Don Walker), "People's Choice", and "Best in Show".
Sam's rig won big.
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Sam Whittingham
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After accepting his awards the British Columbia-based builder told the assembled crowd that he built the bike, "to pay homage to the Portland scene." "You guys have something really special going on here," he said, "and I wanted to do something special to honor that."
